Teach history to a 3-year-old? Yes! Guess what? It is not about dates and historical figures. This post includes ten awesome ideas to begin teaching your 3-year-old history. Montessori History emphasizes duration and passage of time works. Telling time is part of Montessori's history area. Time is such an abstract, non-tangible idea even to us adults. Imagine what it is like for children who developmentally cannot even comprehend a second versus a decade? Montessori history speaks to duration and passage of time in the early childhood classroom.

Teach History to a 3-Year-Old with these Montessori Activities

Use an old fashioned egg timer or hourglass to distinguish the duration of one minute. Once the child masters one minute, you can introduce him to 2-5 minute timers.

Use a large analog clock. Have the child observe the long second hand of the clock as it goes around and moves forward one spot. Try to use a clock that has a tick tick tick and a louder sound when it clicks over to the next minute.

Introduce First Time Lines where a child sorts images of people of varying ages into order. Another idea is to create a Timeline of the Day activity. Kids crave routine and this activity feeds into that desire.

Create a Family Tree with images or drawings.

Use a linear calendar along the wall to record day, weather, special occasions, and school holidays.

Introduce a standard wall calendar to the child. Involve the child is identifying the day of the week and managing the calendar generally. Make sure to name the days of the week, the month, the season, and the year each day.

Introduce seasons and months with pictures representing the four seasons and twelve months of the year. Connect weather to the seasons to make the learning more concrete. This book list about seasons is a good one if you need a few ideas.

Create an All About Me book, or a personal Time Line. A perfect time to do this activity is at birthday time where the child brings in photos from when he was in his mom's belly onward.

Using a non-digital clock, tell time by the hour and then by the half-hour. Eventually, the child will get to equating the number of seconds in a minute, the number of minutes in an hour, and so on. When you get to that point, this telling time activity really brings the point home.

Children begin learning to read and write long before they pick up a book or a pencil and piece of paper. If a child is ready to start the journey (and remember there is a range of development typically from 3 to 6 years old), these Montessori pre-reading activities are what you need. They are a great way to warm the child's logic, problem solving, focus, and concentration skills. Below are five Montessori Pre-Reading Lessons.

Montessori Pre-Reading Lessons

Children enjoy the Montessori Does Not Belong activity. You can make this activity as straightforward or complicated as you would like to by making the differences more or less subtle. Making cards is easy to keep the child's interest. I made a set of “Does Not Belong” cards using real images if you would like to take a look at them.

This activity involves sorting images into categories. Like the “Does Not Belong” activity, you can make the Classification by Category lesson as easy or difficult as possible, adjusting for the child. This activity is also a fun way to integrate the concrete material into the child's learning with figurines. I choose to use real images in my classification categories. Children relate better to real images and are more likely to respond to the activity, in my experience. A set of Montessori Classification Cards is available in my Teachers Pay Teachers store if you'd like a fresh set!

This pre-reading Montessori language activity involves simple nomenclature cards. The work can be done with image-to-image with the label, or image with a label to image and the to label. Children match the image and then the labels to the image. They work from left to right, preparing the child for reading and writing. These cards can be as creative as you need them to be. You can create cards specific to a child. For example, if a child likes sports, or insects, or the human body, you can create nomenclature cards specific for a unit or a child.

This lesson works a child's logic skills as he closely compares and contrasts the images to make a match. The child develops language with these types of activities, as he works from left to right, preparing him for reading and writing. Here is a set of Look Alike Matching cards using real images that I created for my teaching.

I adore Story Sequence cards. You can create these cards to apply to a simple act in daily life, like giving a hug. You can also apply these cards to science with the life cycle, or even a story from a child's favorite book. Children put the cards in order, working their reading comprehension early on in their journey to reading.

My son came home one day with a huge smile on his face. He shared that his teachers gave the Montessori First Great Lesson. Consequently, I knew his journey into the Cosmic Curriculum had begun, and he would henceforth be intrigued with the many cultural subjects. Montessori Elementary is simply amazing.

Montessori's First Great Lesson

Elementary children are filled with awe as the story unfolds. They usually receive this lesson during the first few weeks of school. In To Educate the Human Potential, Montessori states, “Our aim, therefore, is not merely to make the child understand, and still less to memorize, but so to touch his imagination as to enthuse him to his inmost core.”

Montessori's First Great Lesson: The Impressionistic Lesson

The story begins with a narrative about “The Great Spirit.” The first few sentences sound similar to the Bible. (Montessori was a Catholic.) Following this, however, various demonstrations and visual representations (either through posters or batiks) introduce the scientific laws governing our world.

These representations captivate young minds:

The difference in the temperature of two glasses filled with ice (one in which salt was added)

The gathering of glitter in a bowl of water

The introduction to the three states of matter (a stick, a container filled with BBs, and a spray bottle with water)

The difference in the melting points of three solids (wax, lead sauter, and a nail heated on a burner)

The contrast in densities of three different liquids (water, oil, and rubbing alcohol)

The representation of the magma inside the earth desiring to escape through a volcano

The balloon with Vaseline shaped like mountains, catching the water from the spray bottle which represents the water cycle

As a result, children ask many questions after receiving this lesson. The studies of chemistry, physics, geography, history, and other cultural subjects begin captivating them.

After having this lesson, my son delighted in delving more into each of these areas, the First Great Lesson being the catalyst. There were questions about the history of the universe and the geography of the world. In addition, an increasing interest in science experiments and the why behind each one followed. He began his journey through the Cosmic Curriculum and I cannot wait to join him on the journey!

Maria

More about the Author

Maria Burke has a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education as well as a Bachelor’s Degree in French from the University of Arizona. She obtained her Master’s Degree in Curriculum Education from Lesley University and holds certification through the American Montessori Society for ages 3-12. She currently teaches upper elementary at Abintra Montessori School in Nashville, Tennessee. Maria also owns Lighthouse Learning, LLC, and creates supplemental educational resources for academic subjects as well as proprioceptive materials.

Knobbed Cylinders are the first visual sense lesson within the Sensorial area of the classroom. To introduce the work, invite the child to the Sensorial area and identify the material, “These are the knobbed cylinders.”

A look at Montessori's Knobbed Cylinders

There are four different blocks of knobbed cylinders. Block 1 varies in height and diameter, and the tallest is also the widest. Block 2 varies in diameter. Block 3 varies in height and diameter, and the tallest has the smallest diameter. Block 4 varies in height.

To handle the knobbed cylinders, grasp the wooden block with your thumb, against the side facing you, and place your three middle fingers on the opposite side. The little finger acts as a cushion when you set it down.

Set it down slowly and carefully within the child’s field of vision. Using the 3-finger grip, grasp onto the first knob and slowly bring it out of the socket. Pause for a moment once the cylinder clears the socket.

Knobbed Cylinder Presentations

Like most Sensorial works, there are several presentations to the Knobbed Cylinders.

Knobbed Cylinders – Presentation I

Lift all the cylinders out of their sockets and line them up in order on the table in front of the block. Be sure to make eye contact with the child often and pause.

Pick up the first cylinder that was removed from the block. Trace around the base with the index and third fingers. Using the same fingers trace around the edge of the socket opening (for the smallest cylinder, use only your index finger). Slowly lower the cylinder into its socket with one edge slightly lower than the others so that it slips into the socket first.

Repeat with other cylinders, then run index and third fingers across the cylinder tops and the block to make sure all the blocks are in properly.

Offer the child a turn.

Knobbed Cylinders – Presentation II

Cylinders come out of the block in a similar manner, but they are placed randomly in front of the block.

Study the block and show the child the empty sockets. Trace the empty socket on the left. Search for the cylinder that fits, trace its base, and trace the socket again.

Continue with remaining cylinders

Knobbed Cylinders – Presentation III and Beyond

Two blocks in a “V” shape

Three blocks in a triangle formation

All four blocks in a square formation

For an extension, have the child try the exercise blindfolded.

Thank you for stopping by today! Please leave me a comment! I love hearing from you!
Marnie

It's very easy to create a fabric matching basket to use with a Montessori sensorial lesson. It's a great sensorial and language work for your preschooler. The basket includes same size pairs of fabrics. In our case, the basket is a derivative of the traditional Montessori fabric basket. I included different fabric designs, but traditional Montessori is same color, same size, and different textured pairs.

Fabric basket Montessori sensorial lesson

To introduce this work to your child, first include only one of each pair. Sit with your child and go through each fabric using “economy of words”. So, you would say, “Striped. Spotted.” Then add the other part of the pair and categorize the fabrics by finding the match. Do this step with the child first, then allow the child a turn.

I also prepared fabrics of different textures that to introduce with a blindfold (to isolate the quality). Invite the child to feel each piece of fabric and describe with economy of words, “Rough. Bumpy. Smooth. Soft.”

The traditional fabric matching work presentation

This work belongs in the Sensorial area of a Montessori classroom and typically holds the same color and same sized fabrics of different textures. Here is how you would present the traditional Fabric Matching work:

“Today, I would like to show you some new work, fabric feeling. Let’s go wash our hands first.”

Lay the fabrics neatly on the mat in a single horizontal line.

Feel a few fabrics intently. Look away to emphasize that you are doing the work with your hands and not your eyes.

“Now I want to find a match. I want to find two fabrics that are the same. I want to match this fabric using just my fingers, not my eyes.”

Isolate one of the fabrics at the lower left of the mat.

Feel the contrasting fabric, and then put it down. Feel the control, and then put it down. If you have found a match, feel the fabric again and place it next to the control. “These two are the same. They match,” and place one on top of the other.

Move the matched pair to one side and match the rest.

Offer the child a turn.

Have you created your own fabric matching basket for this Montessori sensorial lesson? What fabrics and textures did you include?

I love the beauty of Montessori materials. While I wish I could purchase them all, I can't. Thankfully, there are ways to bring Montessori into the home without breaking the bank. One such way is to make the materials, and Montessori smelling bottles are easy to DIY.

DIY Montessori Smelling Bottles

Making the smelling bottles is pretty straight forward and can be done with items you already have at home. I found our bottles at a local arts supply store, but you can find them in the travel section of your grocery store or online.

For this set of bottles, I used three different extracts we had on-hand. The beauty of these materials, though, is that you can choose your own scents based on the season, themes you're working on, or your child's interests.

Materials:

Small bottles

Cotton balls

Various scents (I used Vanilla, Peppermint and Lemon extracts)

Approach:

To make your own sensory bottles, put a cotton ball into two of the small bottles. Place a few drops of vanilla extract on each cotton ball. Repeat this process with the peppermint and lemon extracts, using two bottles for each scent. It's best to start with only two or three pairs of bottles.

I placed colored sticker dots on the bottom of each the pairs. This builds in control of error to the lesson and allows the child to self-correct as needed.